BSpaceThe British University in Dubai (BUiD) Digital Repository

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BSpace provides access to the Dissertations, Thesis, Research projects, Faculty publications and archives of BUiD.

There is general consensus on the links between project success, contracting plans and
related challenges. In oil and gas industry, with multilayer set up of complex large-scale
projects, the challenges of project contributors, including main contractor and
subcontractors are even exacerbated. Clients though, have gradually adapted project
partnering strategies to overcome the challenges, enhance project outcomes and to make
the project successful. This dissertations, intends to extend an insight in regional project
alliancing characteristics, including better understanding of benefits and risks of
alliancing in project and the impacts on project outcome that might help project executers
to build up an effective partnership. Research aim is fulfilled by developing the
theoretical framework based on intensive literature review on research variables. The
nature of research and adapted measurement tools are based on qualitative study,
organized with sets of semi structure interviews and case study approach. Four
contractors (two main contractors and two subcontracts) with different scope of supply
and field of activity were selected as study sample in United Arab Emirates and Oman.
Interviews were carried on with organization’s top executives and project managers with
adequate experiences in handling and delivering successful partnered projects. The study
has revealed a set of benefits and risks and the impacts on project outcomes. Among
benefits, commercial interests, communication and integration improvement, planning
and resource allocation enhancement and likelihood of higher customer satisfaction in
partnered project, perceived to be of high importance. Relatively, the risks of delays in
project with low quality of delivered job and the risk of decline in safe performance are
main risks which could be concluded in this study. Subsequently, the likelihood of
positive impact of communication improvement and negative impact of miss integration
and inconsistency on project outcome is considerable.